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<\/p>\nA Europol supported an action day against criminal networks smuggling migrants from Vietnam to the European Union and the United Kingdom. Law enforcement authorities across Europe have intensified their efforts to disrupt migrant smuggling networks as part of a coordinated whole-route approach addressing every stage of the criminal business model.<\/p>\n
Supported by Europol, recent operational activities have increased their focus on dismantling the full scale of connected international networks that profit from vulnerable migrants through dangerous journeys, debt bondage, and often, subsequent exploitation. These networks operate across continents, linking facilitators in countries of origin, transit hubs, and destination countries, while generating significant illicit profits.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Smuggled with lorries via the English Channel<\/p>\n
A joint operation involving law enforcement authorities from Belgium, France, and the United Kingdom, supported by Europol and Eurojust, led to the dismantling of a Vietnamese criminal network smuggling migrants across the English Channel. The smugglers transported the migrants to the UK using lorries departing from ports in northern France and, to a lesser extent, small boats. During the action day, authorities targeted the network at multiple levels, arresting suspects responsible for accommodation, transportation, and financial coordination. Over 40 irregular migrants were discovered during the searches in France.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The action day led to:<\/p>\n
19 arrests (16 in France, 3 in the UK)20 locations searched (16 in France and 4 in the UK)Seizures of 1 apartment, 10 vehicles, EUR 60 000 and GBP 2 500 in cash as well as identity and travel documents, over 25 phones and other electronic devices. Freezing of 1 bank account containing EUR 75 000.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Over EUR 1.6 million in criminal profits detected<\/p>\n
The investigation revealed that migrants paid up to EUR 50 000 to reach the United Kingdom from Vietnam. The network organised over 200 transports from France to the United Kingdom, moving more than 1 000 migrants across the English Channel, with an estimated EUR 50 million in turnover. Financial investigations identified approximately EUR 1.6 million transferred from the United Kingdom to Vietnam. The main organiser of the network is believed to be an unidentified woman based in Vietnam, underlining the transnational structure of this and similar criminal networks and the need for continued cooperation along the entire smuggling route.<\/p>\n
The network paid approximately EUR 700 to taxi company drivers to transport migrants from Paris to meeting points in northern France or Belgium. Migrants typically paid between GBP 8 000 and GBP 10 000 for the final leg from France to the United Kingdom, as part of a broader package covering visa applications, flights to Europe, accommodation, and onward transportation. Many migrants only paid part of the total sum upfront, leaving them with significant debts upon arrival. This increased their vulnerability to sexual and labour exploitation, as they were often coerced into exploitative situations to repay their smuggling fees.<\/p>\n
Coordinated law enforcement actions<\/p>\n
To connect the dots in this case, Europol facilitated the exchange of information and provided operational coordination and analytical support. To support field activities with real-time information exchange and operational analysis, Europol deployed an analyst to France on the action day. Such deployments enable Europol\u2019s experts to cross-check operational information against Europol\u2019s databases and to provide leads to investigators in the field.<\/p>\n
Eurojust set up a joint investigation team between Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, and Europol to coordinate the judicial efforts.<\/p>\n
New Europol centre reinforces support against migrant smuggling<\/p>\n
Migrant smuggling remains a key criminal threat for the EU, requiring coordinated action across the entire criminal chain \u2013 from recruitment and transit to the financial flows that support it. Europol supports investigations through a data-driven approach, enhancing cases provided by national authorities with operational analysis and expertise. Europol also facilitates information exchange and coordinates joint operations to disrupt criminal networks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Europol supported an action day against criminal networks smuggling migrants from Vietnam to the European Union and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":517485,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[59,57,58,50,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-517484","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-kingdom","8":"tag-gb","9":"tag-great-britain","10":"tag-greatbritain","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/517484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=517484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/517484\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/517485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=517484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=517484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=517484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}